FBC salon upgrade issue

[Amberjack]

We are refreshing Amberjack's salon with fresh paint, teak and holly sole and new teak settee "end panels" (I'm not sure what to call these pieces). Everything moving along reasonably well until we tried to mount the new settee end panels. We used the old pieces for patterns and used the same thickness ply but when I screw through the engine original room bulkhead screw holes, line up the bottom with the cabin sole and stand the piece up plumb there is a gap of about 1/4" at the aft bulkhead increasing to 5/8" at the forward edge of the settee. The only way to eliminate the gap is to toe the piece in to the settee taking it out of plumb. The original settee end pieces did not have a gap where the horizontal seat part joins the inboard end. Were they also out of plumb and I just didn't notice? The only reason I can think of that Bertram would do this intentionally would be to create slightly more space in the companionway area.

Has anyone else experienced this? I'll go back tomorrow and install the settee cushions to see how it looks before making a decision. Any input?
I don't have an Imgur account (yet) so no photos.

[Tony Meola]

Doug

Take a couple of pictures for us to look at.

[Amberjack]

Tony--I've been putting off setting up an Imgur account and now its come back to bite me in the rear so I can't post images.

We installed the seat cushions yesterday and they told us what the settee geometry should be so it looks like a simple matter of fitting and perhaps a shim. The large, tapering gap is now a consistent 1/4" gap. Somehow in the process the settee end piece lost 1/4" in dimension. Drawer boxes are fit and now on glides rather than bare wood. First paint finish coat goes on today, then one more and I can reattach the trim removed at the beginning of the process.

I have taken pictures and once done with this final push I'll set up a photo account and post to the site. It has been a much more complex and labor intensive (and expensive) project than expected but the boat is really starting to come alive.

[Tony Meola]

Doug

Sorry I can't help about the seats without a picture. Not sure what happened.

I will say this, if the boat is on the hard, and not perfectly blocked up and level, the hull takes a twist. That would cause an issue. Everything looks good until you remove it, then when you go to put it together it does not fit right.

I can tell you that there are year's when I pull the boat for the winter, the cabin and bathroom door do not fit right. Once back in the water everything goes back to normal..

As far as cost, I have learned that what ever you think it will cost, and double it and you will be closer to the real cost.

[Ernie Sandoval]

Doug, when I put my interior back together I remember having a similar problem. In my case, the floor was holding it up and it wasn't sitting in the recessed area very well. Like Tony was saying, these boats get twisted and when you pull some of the key interior parts out it probably settles a bit. Worst case scenario a little teak trim would look great!

[Amberjack]

Ernie--The work is being done with the boat in the water so all things should be equal. BUT, I knew the cabin sole in the dinette area had sagged and when we removed the dinette table we could see it was more than incidental and the new teak and holly sole wouldn't lie flat without correcting the sag first. The athwartship deck beam under the sole did not extend to connect to the main fore/aft beam so that area was just hanging on the 1/2" ply. I think when we fixed that it probably changed the settee angle slightly.

First coat of Interlux Brightside went on yesterday, didn't cover well. When I called Interlux they told me to apply a full strength coat of chosen color first, THEN a second coat with flattening agent. Wasn't clear in the instructions that came with the paint. So, second (full strength) coat today and final coat Friday. Then I can start to put everything back together.

[Ernie Sandoval]

The floor on my boat seemed a bit thin to me too after removing the dinette. I was afraid to put much very weight on it. There were a couple of wood stringers on mine that didn't connect to the sides. I thought that was strange but when I put it all back together and actually screwed it all back into one giant piece, it was very strong. They must have done some of this stuff to save weight but it definetly makes it hard to go back 30-40 years and figure out the plan. Especially for my lowly carpentry skills.